Panic World

We are living in a casino [Ad-free]

First they came for our mobile apps, then they came for our videogames, and now, it seems pretty much every aspect of our lives is being re-oriented around gambling. Who are the players — inside and outside of tech — that have spent the past decade building out “Casino World”? Edward Ongweso, Jr. joins us to talk about why we should be panicking about a world where everything is gamified, and what’s in it for the people trying to run the floor.

Our guest 2025-06-25 07:00:06 +0000 UTC View Post

Why were cops fainting from fentanyl? [Ad-free]

Some urban legends are just for fun, like the “Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus,” while others are not. Today we’re investigating the claim that while busting drug dealers, police can accidentally “absorb”  fentanyl through their skin, causing them to suffer a whole bevy of health problems — starting with fainting. Years later, it’s still impacting legislation across the country and mostly wasting a bun...

Your conspiracy families [Ad-free]

When Grant talked to his friend whose dad had become a Holocaust denier, we got a huge response from folks who had family members with other… interesting ideas. Today, we’re answering some of your questions. Like: what do you do when you have your own kids and had counted on your (now conspiracy-pilled) parents to help care for them? What about when you question your own reality due to those close to you losing touch with theirs? And how much of all this is untreated medical disorders ver...

The man behind Trump's Salvadoran gulags [Ad-free]

This week we’re asking an important question: Who is really inspiring the “vibe” of Trump 2.0? No, it's not Elon Musk. We’re talking about President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador. Joining us is Ricardo Avelar, to explain how this club promoter, hustle bro, and LinkedIn influencer grew up to become a dictator whose playbook President Trump is now stealing from.

Aside from being a massive blink-182 fan, our guest Ricardo Avelar is a journalist and political analyst. You can...

What happened to Kanye? [Ad-free]

America’s not doing so hot right now. Kanye West, on the other hand, hasn’t been well for quite some time. Akilah Hughes joins us again to discuss the idea that Kanye has always been a mirror for the American zeitgeist. What is about him, and about us, that makes that theory true? And, are we — both Kanye and the United States — totally doomed, or can we get better?

Our guest Akilah Hughes is a writer, comedian, and reporter. You can find her work at 2025-05-20 07:00:00 +0000 UTC View Post

AI therapy slop [Ad-free] [Extended]

Dr. ChatGPT will see you now.

Ryan wrote about using ChatGPT for therapy, and a lot of responses to that announcement involved calling him an idiot. This week, he sits down with Grant to talk about what he learned over experimenting with AI therapy for a few months, and a broader chat about the birth of the AI world — and how it’s pretty much involved in everything already (in good and bad, and mostly bad, ways). Dr. ChatGPT will see you now.

Credits

- H...

How long will Trump's base support him? [Ad-free]

Last time we had Charlie Warzel on, it was to determine whether the insurrection had been a political success. Now, 100+ days into Trump 2.0, he joins us again to answer some simple questions: Should we be worrying about the survival of American democracy now? And also, with the fallout from tariffs revealing the first cracks in Trump’s base, is this whole thing good for anyone? Plus, are we ready for Dave Portnoy 2028?

Our guest Charlie Warzel is a writer for The Atlantic and for his...

The effects of true crime brain rot [Extended] [Ad-free]

What is it about true crime that's fueled its rise to one of the most popular genres in entertainment?

In the past decade, true crime has gone from a niche and somewhat disparaged genre to one of entertainment’s most prolific. What is it about true crime that’s made it become such a huge part of popular culture? Through the lens of the mysterious disappearance (and reappearance) of Hannah Kobayashi, journalist Jennifer Swann joins us to talk about how missing persons’ cases take o...

That time a 4chan user got thrown in a Taliban prison [Ad-free]

Arturo Castro joins us to tell the story of Miles Rutledge — your regular 4chan guy who got himself locked up in a Taliban prison.

Today, we’re telling a story of human ingenuity. Except, in a dumb way. It’s one of the craziest things that has happened in a long time — which is really saying something — when some bro on 4chan ended up in a Taliban prison. Arturo Castro joins us to talk about a British guy named Miles Rutledge.

Our guest Arturo Castro is an actor and curr...

Netflix's "Adolescence" and the masculinity crisis [Ad-free]

On March 13, 2025, Netflix released “Adolescence,” and ever since, parents have been learning that Andrew Tate is bad. What are we to do?

On March 13, 2025, Netflix released “Adolescence,” and ever since, parents have been learning that Andrew Tate is bad. What are we to do? Ryan talks to Grant about how the problems we have on the internet now are not dramatically new, it’s just that everyone has the internet in their pocket all the time — and, to borrow a 2010s phrase, the...

Has China already won the internet? [Ad-free]

Today we’re talking about a panic that’s been simmering for a while but has, in the past couple of years, become a full-blown panic. And that’s the technological Cold War that the US is waging with China. (Okay, and now also the tariff war, but that’s with pretty much everyone.) Are the Chinese really so radically different from us, or — at least when we’re on the internet — are we the same? Tianyu Fang joins us to compare Chinese and American internet culture, and who suffers f...

My friend's dad is a Holocaust denier now [Ad-free]

Today, we’re doing something a little different. Grant asks Ryan to step back from being host, and instead to step in as a social worker for people who fall for conspiracy theories. The person in question is Grant’s friend’s dad, who read a recent “report” saying that the Holocaust “actually wasn’t as bad as they say,” and it’s tearing his family apart. We’ll get into what causes people — especially our Boomer family members — to fall for these theories, and whether we...

Here's who killed the #MeToo movement (with Kat Tenbarge) [Extended] [Ad-free]

If we're in the post-MeToo era, who killed it?

Are we in the post-MeToo era? In this episode, we’re reconciling with not only how society at large has adapted to its rise and fall, but also how Hollywood and social media have adapted as well. Spitfire News’s Kat Tenbarge joins us to discuss that — and just who it is that killed #MeToo.

Our guest Kat Tenbarge is an independent journalist, and publisher, editor, and creator of Spitfire News. Subscribe to Spitfire News at 2025-03-26 07:00:09 +0000 UTC View Post

Who turned Gen Z fascist? (With Felix Biederman) [Extended] [Ad-free]

In 2024 many of the youngest voters started finding the newest generation of right-wing freaks appealing. What gives?

Every four years America suffers through a national election, with its own distinct collection of far-right freaks. Yet against the trend, in 2024 many of the youngest voters started finding them appealing. So who or what turned Gen Z fascist? Felix Biederman of Chapo Trap House joins us to discuss the main players in the right-wing (mano)sphere, and whethe...

Who orders hitmen online? (With Carl Miller) [Ad-free]

Right now, you might be thinking someone, somewhere, is on the internet doing something for money that’s really awful. That’s probably true, and has been in the past. Although, plenty of times it’s not — take Bonsai Kittens — but what about Red Rooms, where you can supposedly pay for assassinations or watch live torture? Today journalist Carl Miller joins us to talk about the dark web. What’s actually on there, how people use it, and how much should we be panicking about it?

You’re panicking wrong about AI (with Casey Newton) [Ad-free]

On the bad side, we have copyright infringement, exploitation, and misinformation; on the good side, we have its uses for brainstorming, editing work, and combating loneliness. On both sides, everyone is freaking out about AI — but are we freaking out about it for the right reasons? Casey Newton joins us to make the pitch that whatever you think, AI is not “crypto 2.0.” Everyone, in every generation, needs to take it seriously.

Our guest Casey Newton is a tech journalist who found...

Here's why everyone's fighting about delivery apps (with Allegra Rosenberg) [Ad-free]

Perhaps you’ve seen someone pop off online about a delivery order going wrong, or it being too expensive. Maybe you’ve been one of those people. Some call them “Treatlerites” — “treat” + “Hitler,” of course — and it’s when general panic ensues after someone acts selfishly dictatorial about their delivery app output, and foolishly decides to rant about it online. Allegra Rosenberg joins us to discuss how much we should be reacting to this.

Our guest Allegra Rosenber...

One month of DOGE shit [Exclusive]

Ryan and Grant discuss what we've seen one month into the second Trump Administration, and what it means.

Credits

- Host: Ryan Broderick
- Producer: Grant Irving
- Researcher: Adam Bumas
- Business Manager: Josh Fjelstad

Is dating worse than ever? (With Magdalene Taylor) [Ad-free]

When it comes to modern relationships, most reporting has three main points: Gen Z is sexless and puritan, Millennials are scared about their inevitable doom, and Boomers are boozers who are going down swinging — literally. In this age of social media and apps, we couldn’t help but wonder: has technology made dating worse? Magdalene Taylor joins us to talk about what led to the “loneliness and isolation epidemic” and what we can do about it, or if we’re screwed (and not in a good wa...

The secret plan to outlaw porn in the US (with Junlper) [Ad-free]

As of this recording, 17 states don’t have access to PornHub. You might assume that’s because of very normal people like Speaker of the House Mike Johnson needing to monitor his son’s masturbation habits, but was it conservatives’ fault? Or… was it well-meaning liberals? Junlper joins us to discuss who is behind this new and extreme porn ban, and its implications beyond those states and across the country.

Our guest Junlper works for The Onion and cohosts the podcast Western K...

What Area 51 can teach us about the drones in NJ (with Dylan Thuras) [Ad-free] [Extended]

Americans love not believing anything the government tells us, and it seems likely we’ll just keep coming up with stories to explain what is probably really boring in real life. The latest of these is the mysterious drones that descended upon New Jersey and then vanished without a trace. Dylan Thuras joins us to shed light on Americans’ love of conspiracy theories, which naturally begins with Area 51.

Our guest Dylan Thuras is the co-founder of Atlas Obscura. Follow his work at 2025-02-05 08:00:06 +0000 UTC View Post

Sergei Khazov-Cassia on the Blue Whale Challenge [Exclusive]

Expanding upon the conversation in this week's Panic World, Grant talks to Sergei Khazov-Cassia about his role in and the implications of the Blue Whale Challenge in Russia, where it originated.

Are online "suicide games" real? (With Alex Goldman) [Ad-free]

Momo and the Blue Whale Challenge are two trends that targeted young social media users, supposedly challenging them to an escalating series of dares. Were these viral “challenges” actually causing kids to kill themselves, or was it all a hoax? Alex Goldman joins us to trace the origins of these “suicide games,” as well as the fallout that resulted from them.

Our guest Alex Goldman is the host of a great new podcast called Hyperfixed. Find that anywhere you listen to podcasts, a...

How bin Laden killed TikTok (with Rachel Gilmore) [Ad-free]

America is in a “will they or won’t they” situation with TikTok, but it’s not cute. As of last week, the app was finally set to get banned, but over the weekend Trump stayed its execution. Because we don’t really know if/when the app will get deleted, instead, let’s look back at how we got to this dark and dumb moment in the first place. Rachel Gilmore joins us to talk about where it all began: like so many other things, with Gen Z and Osama bin Laden.

Our guest Rachel Gilmo...

Meta doesn't care anymore [Exclusive]

Producer Grant joins Ryan to talk about how Mark Zuckerberg went from looking and acting like “Every Guy Walking Down the Street in Boston in the Mid-2000s” to his current era, “I Work in the Financial District and I’m Dating A Girl from Bushwick,” and said man’s recent announcement that Meta would no longer be employing fact checkers, instead relying on community notes to flag offensive content.

Credits

- Host: Ryan Broderick
- Producer: Grant Irvi...

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How Facebook caused January 6th (with Charlie Warzel) [Ad-free] [Extended]

On January 7, 2021, did you think the storming of the capitol would be politically successful? Charlie Warzel joins us on the eve of Donald Trump retaking the White House to weigh that question as he and Ryan trace the origins of the insurrection and its ultimate impact on US politics.

Our guest Charlie Warzel is a writer for The Atlantic and for his Substack, Galaxy Brain (https://warzel.substack.com/). You can...

Does the left really need a Kyle Rittenhouse? [Exclusive]

Ryan and Grant talk about the fallout from Luigi Mangione's alleged assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, and whether or not it will have ripple effects in this political climate.

The Top 10 Panics of 2024 (with Katie Notopoulos, Luke Bailey, & Adam Bumas) [Ad-free]

It’s the end of the year episode. We’re talking about some of the best, and worst, things on the internet for 2024. Joining us are friends of the pod Katie Notopoulos and Luke Bailey, plus our producer Grant Irving and the big on-air debut of our researcher, Adam Bumas. Happy holidays, panickers! Make sure to touch grass this holiday season.

Follow our guests! (And researcher!)

Luke Bailey @lukebailey.bsky.social
Katie Notopoulos @katienotopoulos / @katienotopoulos.bsky.soc...

Did gender influencers doom Gen Z? (With Rebecca Jennings & Luke Winkie) [Ad-free] [Extended]

Despite society’s progress on gender norms, the historic divide on the "boy-girl internet" has started to reemerge due to Gen Z influencers.

Despite society’s progress on gender norms, there is a historic divide on the "boy-girl internet," which recently has started to reemerge — the charge being led by Gen Z influencers. This week, writers Rebecca Jennings and Luke Winkie join us to answer questions: Are boys all right, and are girls all right?

Our guests are Rebecca Jennin...